Recently, some web browsers have added support for style sheet animations. Style sheet animations allow a developer of a web browser style sheet to modify style sheet property values over time such that an animated effect is created in a web page when a supporting web browser applies the style sheet to elements of the web page. A developer can create a style sheet animation for a web page by authoring a style sheet according to a particular style sheet language syntax understood by supporting web browsers. One example of a style sheet language syntax for creating style sheet animations currently supported by some widely-used web browsers is known as “CSS3 Animations” which is short for “CSS Animations Module Level 3”. See, e.g., the CSS Animations Module Level 3 working draft of Mar. 20, 2009 which is available from the World Wide Web Consortium (www.w3c.org), the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference. The specification is also available on the Internet (e.g., currently at www.w3c.org/TR/2009/WD-css3-animations-20090320/).
Unfortunately, current approaches for developing style sheet animations are at best cumbersome. For example, a developer may create and maintain web browser style sheets “by hand” using a computer-based text editing application. This involves the developer generating and modifying text statements (e.g., lines of text) according to a style sheet language. However, even the simplest of animations in which a single object transitions linearly from one animated state to another may involve creating multiple text statements.
Another drawback to current approaches for developing style sheet animations is that they require the developer to be versed in a style sheet language. For a company or organization seeking to develop a style sheet animation for their web site, a developer with such expertise may be scarce or expensive. Moreover, a user who is not a developer versed in the particulars of a style sheet language or who simply does not want to learn the language may still yet desire to create a style sheet animation. Even for developers who do know a style sheet language, creating and maintaining text statements by hand may be a tedious and repetitive process, especially for more complex style sheet animations which may comprise tens of, hundreds of, or even more text statements.
The approaches described in this section are approaches that could be pursued, but not necessarily approaches that have been previously conceived or pursued. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated, it should not be assumed that any of the approaches described in this section qualify as prior art merely by virtue of their inclusion in this section.